Hyperloop testing facility will break ground in Pueblo
A Hyperloop testing facility is to be be built in Pueblo, Colorado, according to project partners Swisspod and Transportation Technology Center, Inc.. Plans call for a full-scale Hyperloop capsule to be built and tested at the city’s PuebloPlex campus. The announcement follows development of the first operational test track in Europe in July 2021. Hyperloop technology relies on pressurized pods moving through sealed tubes to deliver ultra-high-speed ground transportation with minimal environmental impact. [kdvr.com]
California lawmakers hit an impasse on financing bullet train
A battle to secure an additional $4.2 billion for the California bullet train has hit an impasse. While Governor Gavin Newsom backs the California High-Speed Rail Authority plan to continue building a limited system in the San Joaquin Valley, a large coalition in the Assembly wants some of the money diverted to segments in Southern California and the Bay Area. That diversion of money would force the use of either slower, battery-operated trains or diesel locomotives in the Central Valley. Newsom has been adamant that the era of diesel trains must end. The Legislature and Newsom were far apart when the talks broke down. [latimes.com]
Feds pause analysis of Baltimore-Washington maglev proposal
For the second time in less than two years, the Federal Railroad Administration has temporarily halted its analysis of a proposed high-speed maglev train system in the Washington region. The agency said it paused the project “to review project elements and determine next steps.” The FRA has declined to provide further details on its decision to pause the project that would provide magnetic-levitation train service between Washington and Baltimore in 15 minutes. In late 2019, the agency halted its analysis to give those behind the project more time to provide details about its design and engineering. [washingtonpost.com]
Italy extends Covid Green Pass to trains, planes, ferries and coaches
Italy has broadened usage of Green Pass health documents, making them obligatory for anyone traveling on high-speed trains, planes, ferries and inter-regional coaches. The Green Pass is a digital or paper certificate that shows whether someone has received at least one COVID-19 vaccine dose, has tested negative or has recently recovered from the virus. The new ruling triggered protests by some Italians saying it tramples freedoms however demonstrations planned to block railway traffic drew only a handful of people. [reuters.com]
What it was like being stranded in the subway during the New York floods
Camilla Akbari boarded a 7:43 p.m. New Jersey Transit train on Wednesday night from New York Penn Station hoping to get to her mom’s place in Princeton, New Jersey. It’s a trip that generally takes about an hour. This ride, though, took about 14. Amid torrential downpours and flooding, the 24-year-old New York University Law School student found herself stuck overnight on-board the train without electricity, ventilation, food or water. The toilets were unusable. Through the night she says she heard a stream of false promises that help was on the way. [cnn.com]
